Strong and Weak

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West Palm Beach has a Mayor/Commission form of government. Because of the powers of the office, West Palm Beach's mayor, Lois Frankel is considered a strong mayor.

Usually--

• The mayor is the chief executive officer, centralizing executive power
• The mayor directs the administrative structure, appointing and removing of department heads
• While the council has legislative power, the mayor has veto power
• The council is relieved of day-to-day administration
  

Lake Worth has a Council/Manager form of government. Rene Varela is considered a weak mayor.

Usually--

• The council is powerful, with both legislative and executive authority
• The mayor is not truly the chief executive, with limited power and/or no veto power
• The council can prevent the mayor from effectively supervising city administration
• There may be many administrative boards and commissions that operate independently from the city government.

Sources:

DeSantis,Victor S. and Tari Renner. "City Government Structures: an Attempt at Classification" State and Local Government Review, vol. 34, no. 2, (Spring 2002).

According to our Charter, the City Commission sets policy decisions.

Today at 4pm, The Charter Review Committee of West Palm Beach will be looking into reducing the powers of the mayor of West Palm Beach.

Weak Mayor vs. Strong Mayor.